Travel and Trust
by MotherOfStories
Summary: In Wild Space, anything can happen. A young woman leaves her homeworld and family in favor of the man she gets in a relationship with and starts travelling and meeting all kinds of new species that change her life. Mostly will feature OCs, though may have mentions of or eventually involve canon characters as well.
1. Chapter 1

Leyna Edymn had never left Lysatra before she turned sixteen, but when she did it was because her semi-new boyfriend Tynan Mendax who was one of the most prominent pilots of star cruisers for the rich in the galaxy. As such, he always got a free ticket for a plus one on every voyage in his assignment docket and she was thrilled when he cemented their dating status by giving her his current ones. She packed all the nicest clothes she had and departed with him.

Their first stop on the journey was Thune, a brown and blue planet full of all kinds of different species from Wild Space and beyond mixed together. Once docked at the space port, Leyna went on a tour of Thune City with Tynan and noticed several other of the passengers were also there. Shops of all kinds lined the main streets, filled with all kinds of goods to tempt visiting travelers into spending their money. Tynan suggested lunch at a Twi'lek restaurant, which they enjoyed together and headed back out to explore. Towards the end of the day, it was time to head back to the star cruiser and lines of beings wanting to embark waited patiently at the sales booths. Most of the species looked familiar from their walk around Thune City, while two of them weren't although they were certainly Near-Human by their build.

"Tynan look, they have blue skin." Leyna whispered.

"Must be Pantorans, since that one guy has pastel green hair. I've met a few on trips to their home world Pantora in the Outer Rim. Close resemblance to the description we've heard Chiss look like, but their eyes are gold or black and you can see how vibrant in contrast the hair is. The one wearing the hood and shaded lenses must be from the darker side of their moon where there's usually very little sunlight."

She listened to his explanation with interest and noticed that the one with the protective glasses looked at them. "Let's go introduce ourselves."

Tynan shrugged. "Sure, they speak Basic." He walked with her over to the strangers and held out a hand. "Welcome to Wild Space. I'm Tynan and this is my girlfriend Leyna."

The man with the bright hair beamed and shook hands enthusiastically while the other bowed formally. "Nice to make your acquaintances. I'm Gaur and this is my cousin Atun. We came from Pantora to see your part of the galaxy. You look familiar Tynan, have you visited our planet?"

"A couple times within the last year when the star cruiser I was piloting went out that way for a tour. You might have seen me in passing getting some supplies at the space port."

"Yes, that is very likely. My betrothed owns a fine jewelry store over there and I frequently visit while we plan our nuptials. This is my last vacation as a bachelor, so my cousin and I decided to make the most of it."

Tynan nodded, though Leyna thought he looked a little uncomfortable. "Stag party, huh? Not a bad idea to give your single days a send off."

"Gaur seems to think I need to get out more." Atun said dryly. "I only agreed to come along to keep him out of trouble."

"Oh yeah, I forgot it's a tradition on Pantora to have a travel companion to vouch for your behavior."

"Most don't remember such a small detail from a few visits to our moon, I am impressed."

"Humans sometimes still do that too." Leyna thought of one of her friends back home who'd done that with their sibling. "Looks like you're next in line, so we better let you get your tickets."

Gaur nodded. "It's been good to converse with you two, hopefully we can talk more later."

"Anything is possible." Tynan replied casually and led Leyna away into the ship. "There's something suspicious about them."

"What makes you say that?"

Tynan looked down at her seriously with his grey eyes. "Because last time I visited Pantora, there wasn't a jewelry store in the space port strip."

She shrugged. "His fianceé might have been in the process of buying or renting the location at the time and he didn't know when you visited, so he spoke of it in the present tense."

"Maybe. I've got to go get ready for my shift, I'll come see you when I'm rotated out."

"Okay." She kissed him and watched him disappear down one of the corridors to his room. Part of her wondered if Tynan's discomfort earlier was because the Pantorans had thought he was familiar, while the other part reminded her he'd been traveling a lot longer than she and of course he might be recognized in passing for reasons other than he might have taken a girl there before he'd met Leyna. He didn't like to talk about his previous relationships since they'd all ended badly and he had no desire to make her feel insecure. She tried to sleep, eventually gave up and walked to her favorite observation room where she found she wasn't alone. "Oh hello, Atun."

"Evening, Leyna." He turned and bowed to her. "Cannot sleep either?"

She shook her head. "I always have a hard time the first night. It's always relaxing to come and watch the hyperspace sky fly by."

"I agree. You seem to have a lot on your mind."

"Yeah, is it that obvious?"

"I wouldn't necessarily call it obvious, I merely am very good at reading others. I apologise if you find that unsettling."

She had never heard anyone talk like that before and shook her head. "It's okay. Are all Pantorans like this?"

"Some more than others. May I ask what troubles you?"

"It feels all jumbled together. Tynan thinks you're hiding something and I keep wondering if he's just uncomfortable because he had a girlfriend he took to Pantora..." She trailed off as she realized how she sounded and that Tynan would be mad if he ever found out that she spoke about their relationship without permission to a complete stranger. "Pretty pathetic, huh?"

He was silent for a moment as he studied her face. "I don't think so. You want to know you can trust the man you're with, especially away from the comforts of home. You also want to believe others unless they give you a reason not to and there is no shame in that either. Of course there will be dishonest and greedy and those who wish to do harm because good and evil fight a constant battle inside everyone in the galaxy and good doesn't always win."

"That was very philosophical from someone who looks about eight years older than me."

"And how old do you think I am?" His tone sounded almost amused.

"Twenty-four?"

He shook his head. "Flattering, but no. I'm thirty-six."

She eyed him in surprise. "You don't look it."

"You're hardly the first to tell me that. Gaur doesn't look his age either, though only five years younger than myself. At any rate, it is getting very late and I think it's high time I tried to get some sleep."

"Yeah, I probably should too. It was nice talking to you, Atun."

"Likewise, Leyna."

She watched him bow and leave, not too far behind in her own departure. She returned to her room and crawled back into bed and thought about her conversation with him until she fell asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: After some difficulty being able to continue on to this chapter, I revamped the first one.

* * *

Leyna woke to a knock on her door and leaped up to answer it since Tynan had promised he'd come when done with his shift. There he was, tall and handsome and looked tired. "So how close are we to our next stop?"

"Indoumodo? Probably another day as long as we don't experience any delays." He laid on her couch after he kicked off his boots.

"Isn't that the planet with the poisonous insects?"

"They're called kouhuns. Indoumodians capture them out in the swamplands in capsules to sell. Mostly assassins and ambitious politicians and wealthy with grudges get them to take out whoever they wish. One bite from a kouhun can kill anyone instantly unless they happen to have the antidote on hand. Rumor is the natives built up an immunity to their venom by exposing themselves a little bit at a time, but then again they're something of a strange race. Usually they don't invite star cruisers to stop by, so I guess business has been slow and they're hoping to drum up some new prospective clients."

She hmmmed as she made them tea in the small kitchen. "Not a bad idea if you want people to buy from you. I'm sure plenty of passengers have the money."

He laughed. "Yeah, all of them are loaded. Even to get on this star cruiser they need to put down two million credits and they hand it over like pocket change."

"That's a lot more than most on Lysatra see in a lifetime."

"Not unless they want to apply for the Imperial Academy these days. The pay is great if you can graduate from there and don't mind the risk of death. I mean, being a pilot for a star cruiser isn't exactly a picnic, but at least your chances of being attacked are lower."

She poured the tea into two cups. "Has that happened before?"

"Sure, this is Wild Space and pirates seem to know what ships to pick off. Attacks have decreased by a lot though, especially after the Empire put that mining compound on Agaris. It's only happened once when I was on pilot duty about two years ago and almost everyone on the ship got away in the escape pods. The rest aboard the vessel were rescued by an Imperial infiltration team sent to salvage the cruiser if possible. They must have already been in the area or someone aboard had connections with how quickly they showed up."

"Weren't you scared?" She asked and handed him his cup.

"Sure, but then again I was one of the few locked up on the deck with Vagaari raiders. Those nomads go everywhere there's plunder to be had and I guess they thought a luxury ship in this backwater part of space made an easy mark. With how quickly the Empire responded, I doubt that group will give us much in the way of trouble. Rumor is their numbers were significantly depleted over twenty years ago by a Chiss commander out in the Unknown Regions, but no one knows for sure if that's true or not even if the Vagaari have been seen less."

She sat beside him with her cup. "Well I suppose if anyone could do something like that, it would be the legendary Chiss we've only heard stories about. What do you think the chances are meeting one?"

He shrugged. "Not very high since they keep to themselves. The stories come from somewhere granted, but no one's seen any around here in a very long time."

"Yeah." She decided to change the subject because she could tell from the way he spoke he didn't really want to discuss a species he knew she had a fascination with. She supposed it was similar to her feeling insecure just knowing he'd dated other women before her, even without further details. "What's the next stop after Indoumodo?"

"Teth. It's a jungle planet deep within the Hutt controlled portion of Wild Space so you have to watch your step, but it's an interesting place to visit. The B'omarr Order used to call the fortresses there and a few other planets home, but they abandoned their strongholds around the time our parents may have been kids. The Hutts took over the buildings and turned them into personal retreats that would hold against a seige or attack of almost any kind."

"A lot of people do business with the Hutts these days."

He chuckled. "It's one of the few ways to make a living out here. Not everyone can be lucky enough to get into my line of work and there's only a few people enlisting in the Imperial Academy from this part of space, so there's not much left besides smuggling and bounty hunting. I hear that over in the Capitol there are all kinds of jobs, but it's kind of hard to travel there without money."

She nodded. "It would take a long time to save even enough for just a trip, not to mention have enough extra to tide you over till employment started paying off. It's too bad these star cruisers rarely get over that way or it would be easier for us at least."

"Yeah, I've been thinking about getting us out of here. Next one heading out that way I'm assigned to is in about six months, but even with all I've been saving that seems a little too soon."

She sighed. "It's too bad I'm not very good at flying or mechanic work, those pay well and it'd be easy to get in since I'm already aboard."

He patted her hand. "You're really good at cooking and I know the kitchen staff is looking to hire. It might not get as much money, but every little bit helps. With both of us working, we'd definitely have enough by next year."

"That's a really good idea, Tynan." She beamed and finished her tea. "I'll talk to the head chef before someone else does."

"Good idea, I'll be here when you get back."

She smiled. "Good, we need to spend as much time together as possible before your next shift." She said as she got up and headed out the door towards the kitchen.


	3. Chapter 3

Leyna got hired as part of the kitchen crew because she demonstrated an aptitude for cooking and a willingness to follow instructions, so she started right away. When they landed on Indoumodo, Tynan said he was too tired because his shift just ended and she agreed he should rest. She decided to go out by herself amidst the other tourists at least for a little while, though she knew it wouldn't be the same without Tynan. The port they'd docked at overlooked the massive jungle below with havana trees and termite forests, which the tour guide said were the home to the greddleback termites, while the swamps housed the kouhuns just like Tynan had told her. Lots of shops they passed sold kouhuns and their antidote in unbreakable cylindrical containers, while others had all kinds of merchandise made from the bark of the havana trees.

"What do you think of this planet?" Atun asked when the tour was over.

"It's a lot different from my homeworld. We definitely don't have poisonous lifeforms. What about you?"

Atun shrugged fractionally. "I find the concept of a planet that has both jungles and swamps strange, but this is the first time I have ever traveled from home. Gaur on the other hand travels a lot to Coruscant as an Imperial Senator, yet he still would be amazed enough to bore you with a lengthy anecdote on planets with similar habitats."

"Where is Gaur today?"

"He wasn't feeling well and I convinced him to stay in bed to recover."

She nodded. "My mother always said rest was the best medicine. Tynan couldn't make it either because he was too tired from flying all night. Too bad he's missing out, he said the natives rarely allow tour groups through here."

"That is readily apparent from the lack of much in the way of souvenirs. It is clear all of their major profit comes from selling kouhuns."

"Apparently they're in pretty high demand among the wealthy."

Atun shook his head. "I don't understand why someone would stoop so low, but Gaur and I weren't born into wealth like most on this star cruiser. We had to work for what we gained."

"Doesn't always have to be someone of privilege, just someone with enough money to get what they want."

"True. Are you hungry?"

She nodded. "Yeah, but I don't see a place to grab food. I guess that means only the ship offers meals here."

He looked around. "It would appear so, although I must admit that makes this place seem very unwelcoming. One would think they'd expect people to desire sustenance after such sight seeing."

"Probably didn't come to mind since they hardly have outsiders who aren't buying kouhuns or their antidote." She managed to reply, still trying to get used to his way of talking. "You said you weren't born into wealth, yet you speak like you were."

"Pantorans offer equal education regardless of social status, therefore making it easier to progress if given the opportunity. Gaur got a love for politics and I the military, both careers very successful for us."

"So you're part of the Imperial Fleet?"

"I'm merely local to Pantora for the time being, but I have considered joining."

She nodded as they got in line for food. "Seems like Coruscant is the place to be if you want to get anywhere these days that doesn't involve piracy or bounty hunting, especially out here."

"Is that why you left?"

"Partially. Tynan and I are very serious about each other, so to make our relationship work I came along. My parents weren't too happy about my decision, but said I was old enough to do as I wished."

It was hard to tell what his expression was behind those tinted glasses as he glanced at her. "Yet even with their released obligations, you sound as unsure as you did when we spoke in the observation room."

She sighed softly as they found a seat in the crowded dinning hall. "Is it so transparent?"

"Perhaps only to me. I do apologise, Gaur always says I am too blunt with others. I believe that is why I am an admiral instead of married."

"Admiral? At thirty-six?" She asked in surprise.

His lips twitched into a hint of a smile. "Youngest one promoted in a decade."

"And yet you're still unwed? Out here you'd have at least one woman wanting to marry you."

"Gaur seems to think I may meet someone too. He's always been more of an optimist."

She sipped her water. "You disagree with him?"

"Quite often and yet we're still as close as ever. Not that I doubt I will find someone, I jut don't feel now is the right time."

"You sound so confident about that."

He inclined his head. "I suppose I am comfortable even with the scenario where I remain alone."

She blinked in surprise. "Why?"

"I am a warrior and as such we're often married to war or our military career instead of a woman. If I retire perhaps finding someone would be easier, but I'm not old enough to think of that yet."

"So is politics less demanding on Pantora or did Gaur meet his fiancé by chance?"

"A bit of both. He was on vacation at the time he met her and he said he knew his life would never be the same. She wanted nothing to do with him at first, but he was persistent and eventually she came around."

She studied her strange friend. "Must have been hard to see him get engaged first."

"No, not really. The older you are on Pantora, the more eligible you become so it was rather surprising she didn't agree to court Derulo, who is twice our age and was also interested in her."

"That's... unusual. I guess you were just relieved your cousin didn't get his heart broken."

He smiled. "Indeed. I should go check on him to see if he feels better."

She got up. "Yeah and I need to take something to eat so he doesn't starve before his next shift. See you around, Atun."

"Good bye, Leyna."


	4. Chapter 4

Leyna had just gotten off kitchen duty when the ship docked on Teth, so she filled a large thermos with hot caf to keep her energy level up and met Tynan outside the ship to tour the jungle planet. It turned out the jungle portion was what the locals considered the lowlands and there were tall mesas in their highlands, both with fortresses left from the B'omarr Order like Tynan had said. All of them were taken over by Hutts and weren't currently open for tour, but they did get a look at one abandoned and half eaten away by the forest and it was still an impressive structure none the less.

Leyna saw a can-cell fly by when they took a break for lunch on the veranda of the cantina. "That's a very big insect."

"Yeah, they're kinda like Hutts. The older they get, the more massive their size. Rumor is they also bring good luck to whoever sees them." Tynan winked at her.

"Oh come on, who could believe something like that?"

"The locals. Even if they're wrong, what harm could it do to indulge in their culture while here?"

She wondered what Atun would say to such a belief as she shrugged and kept that thought to herself. "Nothing I guess. It just seems as silly as old man Farnel saying he can fly."

Tynan laughed. "Farnel has a few screws loose in his brain I grant you, but at least he hasn't tried to take anyone besides himself flying. The natives here don't expect you to believe right away, only to accept that's what they consider true."

"That's reasonable." She smiled, sipping her caf. "What's left to see?"

"Just some shops, though we can skip those if you want. A lot of them have slaves for sale and that can be unnerving to see if you haven't before."

She knew that was a part of Wild Space, the Outer Rim and even the Empire, so there was really no avoiding that in the long run. "I have to get used to it at some point. Besides, it's not like slavery was uncommon on Lysatra.

He nodded. "Alright then, we'll go there after our meal has settled. Want another drink instead of caf?"

"Maybe later when I don't need the energy."

"By then I'll need it to stay awake."

She laughed at his mock pout and puppy dog eyes. "Okay, fine. One glass of blue ale won't hurt."

He smiled and waved the server over. "Two blue ales, please."

"Certainly." The server took their empty plates away and returned a few minutes later with their drinks. "Will you be wanting anything else?"

"Just the bill."

The server nodded and brought it, collecting the payment from Tynan before going off to tend to other customers.

After they finished their drinks, they resumed their tour and looked at all the shops before going back to the ship. Leyna was almost sad to leave, apart from the fact that there were more slaves on Teth than she remembered on her home planet, but that was normal for a Hutt controlled part of space since a lot of their business was in the slave trade. She said good night to Tynan reluctantly and watched him go off to do the night shift. She read a little to wind down for bed, then tried to sleep and gave up after nearly two hours of tossing and turning. She went to the observation room and sat down to watch hyperspace sky fly by.

"Cannot sleep either, Leyna?"

She smiled a little. "No. What did you think of Teth, Atun?"

He sat near her. "I must admit I found the architecture to be quite interesting, as well as the local fauna. Gaur warned me there were slaves out here, but I hadn't seen any till today and found the matter a little unsettling."

"I know what you mean. I grew up knowing that was normal, but it's not as common on my home planet. Tynan told me we could skip the shops and I'm thinking now that I should have. I wasn't expecting it to affect me." She found herself admitting. It was easy to be honest with Atun whereas there were times she felt too ashamed to admit this sort of thing to Tynan, lest he say she was too naïve.

"Slavery isn't allowed on Pantora, most likely stemming from during the time of the Republic. I think everyone in some way has that inner desire for there to be no slaves, yet no matter the species or planet outside the Republic has had a semblance thereof over the course of galactic history." He looked out at the stars for a long while, then turned his attention to her. "You mentioned your homeworld, will we be stopping there for a tour?"

"Lysatra? Yes, we'll be going there after Pion if I remember the cruise schedule correctly. There's not much there, it's considered a backwater planet by Wild Space standards."

"That cannot be true if it has people like you living there."

She sighed. "I wish I shared your idolized view Atun, but when you grow up as nothing but the daughter of farmers barely scraping by, you realize pretty quickly that you're not special and you'll never amount to anything unless you get out of there."

If he had an expression or reaction of any kind, it was impossible to tell behind those goggles and his blue lips revealed nothing except words when he finally spoke again. "I have obviously upset you, I apologise. I suppose I am too used to the opportunities afforded to all on Pantora, though that didn't mean you could get what you wanted without a lot of hard work. I cannot truthfully say I understand where you are coming from because being a farmer there is considered an honorable and vital job, but I do know what it is like to long for things that seemed beyond my grasp for a long time."

"When you talk like that I would swear you're older than thirty-six."

"Gaur would tell you I was born with an old soul."

She smiled a little. "You two are very different, aren't you?"

He inclined his head. "Yes, but that has only made our friendship stronger. It isn't always the same for others, especially when related as we are."

"I know what you mean. My cousin and I used to be best friends, but ever since she married an engineer she acts like we're not even related, let alone friends."

"Such is the nature of some relationships, unfortunately. I believe I am ready to retire now, I hope you will not have trouble much longer."

She hid a yawn behind her hand. "I don't think I will. Good night, Atun."

"Good night, Leyna." He bowed and disappeared down the hall and she wasn't far behind.


	5. Chapter 5

Leyna woke before the cruiser landed on Pion and felt great disappointment that she had to work while everyone else got to tour the planet, but making money was more important than personal pleasure. What made it worse was that Tynan was off while she was working and he'd have to go back on duty before she got off. He visited her during her lunch hour, though it was hardly the same as being able to spend the entire day with him. Feeling disappointed, she grabbed something light to eat after her shift and ate it before heading towards her room since she had nothing better to do.

"Evening, Leyna."

She looked up to a pair of familiar faces. "Oh hello Gaur and Atun. Where have you been?"

"We went on an extensive version of the tour and returned a little before takeoff."

"Gaur thought it would be educational. He wasn't wrong."

She smiled softly. "I would love to hear all about it."

"Perhaps you would like to join us for tea then?"

"Sure." She realized that Tynan might not like the idea of her spending time with them still, but really didn't see any harm in it as she followed them back to the mess hall. "So what was Pion like?"

"A forest planet." Gaur replied as Atun brought a tray of tea to the table they'd picked out. "Not surprisingly, most of their business involves lumber production. To compensate, the natives plant seedlings in areas designated for regrowth and leave those parts of the forest alone to recover. This practice is so successful that Pion is the only planet in this system that never has to completely stop harvesting trees."

"Lysatra has some forest areas way up in the mountains, but they're off limits to take lumber from since it was declared a sanctuary for wildlife." She took a sip of her tea. "Did they have places like that on Pion?"

Atun nodded. "The natives set aside the oldest part of their woodlands for the flora and fauna to remain undisturbed. They have patrols that sweep the entire planet to keep the trees safe from thieves and vandals, both of which they've had many."

"Agaris had similar problems before the Empire took over the mining compound. What were the natives like?"

"Atun said they were very similar to the Near-Humans on Indoumodo, only they had black zig-zag patterns on their brown skin instead of solid rainbow colors. I had to take his word for it of course, since I was sick when the two of you toured Indoumodo. Two races similar to Twi'leks and Zubrak in Wild Space who may be related to them in some way. Who knows? It might be a few years before we know whether or not they are, though it's interesting to think about."

"Twi'leks live all over the known galaxy, or at least that's what I've heard." She sighed as she wondered if there were relatives of the Chiss anywhere, though it didn't seem likely. "Tynan said they sometimes marry other Near-Humans or Humans and have children, so anything is possible."

"Indeed. Is something wrong?"

"To be honest, I was hoping leaving Lysatra would lead to more than it has so far, but I'm too impatient for my own good."

Gaur inclined his head. "Unfortunately patience doesn't come easy and takes time to develope. However, if everything happened right away, then there would be nothing left for anyone to enjoy."

"I never thought of it that way. Are all politicians so philosophical or did you get that from Atun?"

"Mostly the latter, though I wish there were more like Atun. I couldn't have asked for a better friend or relative."

Atun waived a hand modestly. "I can say the same of you, Gaur."

She got up. "I think you both are good people. It's been a long day and it is finally catching up to me. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Leyna." They replied together.

* * *

She slept fitfully and was awake again before Tynan would be off of his shift. She cleaned her room and then decided to go down to the dinning hall to get an early breakfast and see about picking up an extra shift.

"I'm sorry Leyna. We have enough staff for today, otherwise I would say yes." Her boss told her when she peeked in.

"That's okay." She withheld a sigh and left. She wondered what she should do as she walked down the halls, her feet unconsciously taking her to the observation room. She decided to sit and enjoy the view until Tynan got off duty.

"Hey." He greeted tiredly as he joined her.

"Hey." She smiled. "How was your shift?"

"Long, yours?"

"Pretty much the same. I woke early today and tried to see about getting some more hours, but everyone had shown up, so I just spent time here."

He nodded. "Nothing wrong with that. You hungry?"

"Not really, are you?"

"I should probably eat something light."

She got up. "Then we can grab that on the way to your room."

He walked with her and chose a bowl of fruit to take with him. "Did you do anything interesting after your shift?"

"I talked with Gaur and Atun for a while. They said they took the extended tour of Pion and talked about how the entire planet is a forest and what the natives looked like. It was nice of them to take the time to do so, I felt left out having to work the whole time we were there."

"Yeah, I felt like that the first time I passed through here. I didn't have any friends because I was new here, but I knew eventually I would be able to go onto the planet."

She nodded, glad he hadn't said anything about not trusting Gaur or Atun still. "How long till we reach Lysatra?"

"A few hours. Thinking of visiting your folks while we're there?"

"Maybe, you?"

"No. My father and I don't have much to say to each other since my mother passed." He laid down after finishing his fruit. "I might change my mind though."

"We'll have plenty of time to decide for certain before we arrive."


End file.
